Lifting and transporting device



y 5, 1954 c. R. STOUT 2,679,329

LIFTING AND TRANSPORTING DEVICE Filed June 16, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet l y25, 1954 c. R. STOUT LIFTING AND TRANSPORTING DEVICE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed June 16, 1952 6 ,finvehlov Charms Q. Stout mflflldllllflllb w May25, 1954 c. R. STOUT LIFTING AND TRANSPORTING DEVICE 3 Sheets-Sheet 3Filed June 16, 1952 ,flnvnl'or K Charles 4?. Sloul' am 7 W Patented May25, 1954 QNITED STATEE RtiENT OFFICE 7 Claims.

My invention is a device for lifting and transporting heavy and awkwardobjects such as raw materials in metal fabrication plants and the like.

Until recently sheet, bar and rod steel could be purchased in a mannerthat caused it to be shipped to the user in units small enough to behandled by the lift fork truck that is so widely used in industrialplants to handle all types of lifting and transporting problems. It isnow the policy of suppliers of raw materials for metal fabricationplants to ship materials in units, called lifts or bundles, that arebeyond the capacity of the usual lift fork truck even When the truck ismodified to increase its capacity for lifting to a maximum. Also, ofcourse, many types of raw materials used in metal fabricating plants areof an awkward size and shape to handle. Almost all of the materials arein the form of sheets, rods, tubes, or bars. These raw material formsare frequently long or broad or both. It is not uncommon for them to beof such a shape that they cannot be handled well by a fork lift truckeven if the truck had the actual capacity to lift the mass of thematerial. For example, very long rods or sheets of material even if wellwithin the load capacity of the truck would have to be carried withtheir lengths extending laterally. A lift fork truck with a load somounted on it could not proceed down narrow passageways as would berequired in warehouses and the like. The problem of handling suchmaterials in metal fabrication plants has been enormous. Furthermore, asmentioned earlier the usual shipping unit for raw materials now exceedsthe lifting capacity of these trucks by several times. Consequently themetal fabrication plant is faced with a serious problem in lifting theseunits onto a transport truck or the like. The units could be broken intosmaller weights for handling but such procedure is wasteful of time andeffort.

In view of the foregoing therefore, it is the principal object of myinvention to provide a lifting and transporting device that willaccommodate loads of extreme length.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a lifting endtransporting device that permits lifting and transporting loads of aweight far in excess of the lifting capacity of the lift truck thatprovides the lifting force.

It is a further object of my invention to provid a lifting andtransporting device that will facilitate the removal and placement ofobjects in storage areas in a neat and orderly manner.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a lifting andtransporting device that is simple and relatively inexpensive tomanufacture and maintain.

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combinationof the various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated areattained as hereinafter more fully set forth, and specifically pointedout in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

Fig. l is a perspective view of my lifting and transporting device inthe position it assumes when an object has been lifted and is ready fortransport.

Fig. 2 is a reduced side elevation diagrammatic view of the primary unitand a lift fork truck and illustrates the first step in lifting anobject with the primary unit and a lift fork truck.

Fig. 3 is a similar view to that shown in Fig. 2 except that the liftingis illustrated as completed and a majority of the lift fork truck isdeleted to conserve space.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged rear elevation view of the primary unit supportinga load and shown as though a lifting force had been applied. Brokenlines illustrate an adjusted position of the wheels, and portions of thedevice are broken away to illustrate more clearly its construction.

Fig. 5 is a side elevation view of the primary unit and a load to belifted. The machine is shown secured to the load and ready to lift withbroken lines illustrating the lifted positien. Portions of the deviceare deleted to illustrate it construction more clearly.

Fig. 6 is a reduced diagrammatic side elevation view of the primary andsecondary units and a. fragment of a lift fork truck. The units arearranged over a load and prepared for the first lifting step.

Fig. 7 is the same view as Fig. 6 except that the first lifting step isshown completed, and

Fig. 8 is the same view as Figs. 6 and 7 except that th second liftingstep is completed and the load is supported ready for transport.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary, perspective view of a modified form ofsecondary unit.

Referring to the drawings I have used the numeral ill to designate anordinary fork lift truck having a powered vertically moveable fork l2mounted on it. This unit is used as the source of both lifting andtowing energy for use with my lifting and transporting device.

Th entire mechanism that is my invention is divided for convenience inuse into a primary unit generally designated I4 and a secondary unitgenerally designated I6. As the primary unit is useful independently ofthe second unit, I will describe it and its separate use before enteringinto a discussion of the entire mechanism. The primary unit I4 has aframe or body portion I8 that comprises an elongated rigid element. Aplate I9 is rigidly secured to the end of frame I8 to facilitateengaging the frame end with one of the tines of the lift fork I2. AU-shaped leg portion, comprising the cross member and the legs 22 and 24respectively, is rigidly secured to one end of the frame in any suitablemanner as by welding or the like. The legs and frame are preferablysecured together so that the legs extend at right angles to the frame.

A pair of braces designated 26 and 28 respectively are rigidly securedto the legs and the frame to provide adequate rigidity between the legsand the frame. The particular form of bracing is not material to theinvention, of course. Each leg is provided with a wheel designated 30that is appropriately journalled in a suitable manner as by the axle 32extending through the wheel bearing and the two legs of the bifurcatedelement or fork 34. The top of the wheel forks support the lower ballraces 36 while the lower end of each leg provides the upper ball race.Balls 38 are captured between the races in a conventional manner to forma ballbearing. The shaft 40 is rigidly secured to the wheel fork and thewheel axle 32 is positioned directly below the shaft 40 and as a resultthe wheel will not caster. Shaft 40 extends beyond the top plane ofcross member 20, however, and is provided with a hand wheel 44 whichpermits turning the wheels manually to any desired position. The portionof shaft 40 just below wheel 44 and above cross member 20 has a toothedwheel 46 secured to it that is engaged by a dog or pawl 48 which may bemoved to engage the toothed wheel 46 to insure that the wheel 30 retainsany position in which it is set manually. In the cross mem ber 26 areprovided some lifting means which may be screw threaded elements such asthe ones 49 which threadably engage special nuts 50 that are rigidlysecured to cross member 20 in any suitable manner as by welding or thelike. A. crank 52 may be secured to the screw threaded lifting means Theother end of the screw threaded element is provided with a means such ashook 54 for attaching a flexible element such as chain 55 to it. A thirdlifting means is provided near the end of the frame opposite to that towhich the cross member is secured. As this third lifting means may beidentical to those described above it is merely designated generally bynumeral 58. It serves the purpose of a hook on which to secure chainwhen the primary unit is used alone, and also as a tightening means foranchoring the free end of frame iii to a bundle when the cable is usedfor lifting as will be apparent from the discussion relating tooperation of the entire device as set out below. The point of joiner ofthe legs and the cross member 20 may be further suitably braced as bythe triangular elements 62 being suitably secured to the legs and crossmember as by welding or the like.

The structure described thus far is all that is necessary when theprimary unit is used independently and such use will, therefore, now berecited. In steel fabricating plants sheet steel or the like is acquiredfrom the rolling mill in large bundles such as the one indicated by the49 to facilitate manipulating it.

outline designated 64 in Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5. These bundles have blockssuch as those designated 86 secured to them to space the bundle itselfabove a supporting surface 68 to facilitate engaging the underside ofthe bundles with a lifting mechanism. To lift one of these bundles withmy invention in cooperation with a fork lift truck, the followingprocedure is followed. The primary unit is manipulated over the bundleuntil it assumes a position such as that shown in Fig. 5. Chain 56 isthen extended under the bundle and the chain secured to books 54. Afterthe chain is secured, the slack is quickly and easily removed from thechain by rotating the threaded lifting means 43. The chain 60 is thensecured around the bundle and to its lifting means 58. Not all of theslack is taken out of the chain 60 of course, but it is secured in amanner that causes that end of the bundle to be lifted when the fork I2of a fork lift truck engages and raises the frame I8 to the positionshown by the broken lines in Fig. 5 or as illustrated in thediagrammatic views Figs. 2 and 3. Wheels 30 roll toward the truck as thefork lift carries the frame end up. As the chain is drawn snug beforethis rolling action starts to take place, consequently as the legassumes a vertical position and frame I8 a horizontal one, the chainslift the bundle of raw materials as shown in Fig. 3. The truck may thenbe used to tow the bundle to any desired location. The lifting andtransporting device is disconnected from the load by reversing theprocedure described for lifting. When very long pieces of material areto be handled, it is necessary to use the secondary unit also. I willnow describe the secondary unit, therefore, together with those portionsof the primary unit that are used only when the secondary unit is alsoused.

Near lifting means 58 on primary unit frame I8 is a pulley 10 that isrotatably supported on frame I8 by any suitable means such as the arms12 and axle 14. A pulley 16 is similarly mounted near the cross-member20 on arms I8 and axle 80. Axle also supports the links 82. The linkshave holes 84 near their free ends and a pin 86 slidably extendstherethrough. Any suitable flexible element such as cable 88 is recvedover pulley 1B and under pulley I0.

The secondary unit has a frame 90 that is very similar to frame I8 andat one end is secured a cross-member 92 that is like its counterpart 20.Legs 94 and 96 extend vertically down from each of cross-member 92 andare braced by the diagonals es and I00. Each leg is provided with -awheel I02 rotatably mounted in a fork I04. These forks are secured toshafts that extend through the hollow legs to the hand wheels I08 whichpermit adjusting the wheels to any direction as in the case of theprimary unit. The secondary unit also has lifting elements I08 and H0 totighten chain IIZ as in the case of the primary unit. At the end offrame 90 that is farthest from cross-member 92 is a pierced ear II4which cooperates with links 84 and pin 86 to secure the primary andsecondary units together as shown in Fig. 1.

In the modified form of the secondary unit shown in Fig. 9, the frame H8is shown as a tubular member similar to cross member I20 and legs I22and I24. It is obvious that the frame need not be such a tubular member,but it is considered preferable to the frames used in the major showinfor this particular form Since it provides a frame readily adapted tothe holes I26 and pin- 1. 3 Which are used to secure the cable I39 orlike flexible element in any desired position along the frame. Flexibleelement I 30 is reeved over a pair of horizontally rotating directionchanging pulleys designated I32 and mounted on vertical axles I32 and apair of vertically rotating pulleys I as journalled on horizontal axlesI35 that permit the cable to be directed downward. The ends of the cableextend through the blocks its and are secured to the legs by a suitablemeans such as the clamps I38. By pulling the center of the cable I30along the frame the blocks I36 are raised. This cable I30 is pulled byuse of cable 88 in a manner similar to the way the latter is normallyused to raise the rear end of the secondary unit. In the modified formalso I have shown the wheels Mil secured together by a tie rod I52, tocoordinate their turnin positions. A bracket M4 is provided near thecenter of the cross bar, and it carries a removable pin me. I48 in tierod I42 may be used in conjunction with the pin and bracket to lock thewheels in any desired position. It is understood that similar structurecould be applied to all the units shown, and it has proved itself veryvaluable in steering loads around corners that cannot be managed whenthe unit is merely towed. The lift advantage gained by usin the pulleys,block and cable make it possible to raise a portion of a bundle directlyrather than by tipping the frame. In some cases this type of lifting ispreferable. Trucks for example are often provided with low canopieswhich make it difficult to use the type of tightening means shown in themajor disclosures. The modified form of secondary unit is preferable forremoving lifts from such trucks since the workman is required only toplace the hooks of blocks I35 and all of the tightening and lifting isperformed with the fork lift truck.

The use of the secondary unit with a primary unit and fork lift truck isclearly illustrated in Figs. 6, 'Z and 8. As is shown in Fig. 6 the twounits are arranged over the load to be lifted, budle I 55. Thispositioning of the trucks is accomplished by manual manipulation of theunits. Chain H2 is then placed around the end of the load and slackremoved with tighteners I08 and I I0. Cable 83 is then secured to theend of frame 90 that is nearest ear H 3 and to the fork I2 of fork lifttruck I l. Chain 63 is also placed around the bundle and drawn tight bymeans of tightener 58. As the lift truck pulls on cable 88, therefore,the end of the frame i 8 carrying pulley 73 is held down by chain andthe weight of bundle II6.

As the cable is pulled by the truck a lifting force is applied to theend of the secondary unit that brings it up into the position shown inFig. 7. The end of bundle its under which the chain H2 is placed also israised, of course, while the fork lift truck supports the secondary unitas shown, the links are aligned manually with ear Il -l so that the holein the ear and the ones designated as align. he pin as is then slippedinto place and pressure on cable 38 relieved which causes the weightsupported by the secondary unit bearing on the pin 86 to secure it inplace frictionally. Fork I 2 is then relieved of the cable and placedunder the free end of frame I8. Chain GB is loosened to provide thecorrect lifting length and the end of frame I8 is raised as shown inFig. 8 by means of the fork lift truck. The load is released byreversing the procedure for lifting the load. The fork lift ismanipulated to lower the end of frame I8 and chain 6!).

A series of holes ll outer ends,

If one or both of the units are used as shown and recited a 3000 lb.capacity truck can handle a load of 10,000 lbs. easily. The truck alsofurnishes the motive power to propel the supported bundle from one placeto another. When both units are used, towing is the most practicalmethod of moving. It is practical to push as well as tow when only theprimary unit is employed, however. In many cases stackin of the materialin piles as high as the units will permit saves much storage space. Theunits also permit stacking the materials in piles that are near to eachother. The major saving in using my device comes from the fact that thebundles or lifts may be handled without taking them apart. The time andeffort lost when it is necessary to disassemble the lifts in order toreduce them to a weight which the usual lift fork truck can handle, isenormous. Furthermore, once the bundle is broken, the individual piecesare almost impossible to keep together. Also, of course, very longmaterial cannot be handled well by a fork lift truck alone. There issimply no reasonable way for the fork lift to engage long elementsexcept in the longitudinal center and such a position for the liftcauses the burden to be impossibly wide far as transporting it in afactory building is concerned and it is even awkward out-of-doors.Consequently my device not only increases the load capacity of the usualfork lift truck, but also makes it possible to handle deftly loads thatwould be exceedingly awkward to transport without it. Furthermore, thestructure of my unit is such that all of the lifting is accomplished bythe power of the fork lift truck. In its simplest form the raising ofthe bundl is accomplished by raising the unit frames into a horizontalposition.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of mylifting and transporting device without departing from the real spiritand purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by myclaims, any modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalentswhich may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim:

1. In a lifting and transporting device compris ing a primary unit and asecondary unit; said primary unit comprising, an elongated frame, across member secured to one end of said frame, a pair of spaced apartlegs secured to and ex tending down from said cross member atsubstantially right angles to said frame, a wheel rotatably journalledon the bottom of each leg, a flexible element secured to said crossmember, means for selectively increasing and decreasing the effectivelength of said flexible element, a flexible element secured to saidframe at a point spacedfrom said cross member, a means for selectivelyincreasingand decreasing the effective length of said frame securedflexible element, a plate secured to the bottom of the other end of saidframe, a pulley rotatably secured to the topv of said frame near saidplate, a second pulley rotatably secured to said frame near sai crossmember, a flexible element reeved under said pulley and over said secondpulley, a pair of outwardly extending links secured to said one end ofsaid frame; said links having holes near their a pinselectivelysliolable into and out of said link holes; said secondary unitcomprising, an elongated frame, a pair of spaced apart legs secured tosaid cross member and extending down at substantially right angles tosaid frame. a. wheel journalled on the end of each of said secondaryunit legs, a flexible element secured to said secondary unit crossmember, means for selectively increasing and decreasing the effectivelength of said flexible element, and a pierced ear secured to the otherend. of said secondary unit frame; said pierced ear constructed andarranged to slidably fit between and align with said links; whereby saidpin is insertable through said links and said pin to secure said ear tosaid links, and removable therefrom to detach said ear and linksselectively.

2. In a lifting prising a primary unit and said primary unit comprising,an elongated frame, a cross member secured to one end of said frame, apair of spaced apart legs secured to and extending down from said crossmember at substantially right angles to said frame, a fork pivotallysecured in the lower end of each of said legs, a wheel journalled insaid fork, means secured to said forks pivoting said forks through anarc of substantially ninety degrees, means secured to said fork and saidlegs for selectively locking and releasing said forks against and forpivotal movement, a flexible element secured to said cross member, meansfor selectively increasing and decreasing the effective length of saidflexible element, a flexible element secured to said frame at a pointspaced from said cross member, a means for selectively increasing anddecreasing the effective length of said frame secured flexible element,a plate secured to the bottom of the other end of said frame, a pulleyrotatably secured to the top of said frame near said plate, a secondpulley rotatably secured to said frame near said cross member, aflexible element reeved under said pulley and over said second pulley, apair of outwardly extending links secured to said one end of said frame;said links having holes near their outer ends, a pin selectivelyslidable into and out of said link holes; said secondary unitcomprising, an elongated frame, a pair of spaced apart legs secured tosaid cross member and extending down at substantially right angles tosaid frame, a wheel journalled on the end of each of said secondary unitlegs, a flexible element secured to said secondary unit cross member,means for selectively in creasing and decreasing the effective length ofsaid flexible element, and a pierced ear secured to the other end ofsaid secondary unit frame; said pierced ear constructed and arranged toslidably fit between and align with said links; whereby said pin isinsertable through said links and said pin to secure said ear to saidlinks, and removable therefrom to detach said ear and links selectively.

3. In a lifting and transporting device comprising a primary unit and asecondary unit; said primary unit comprising, an elongated frame, across member secured to one end of said frame, a pair of spaced apartlegs secured to and extending down from said cross member atsubstantially right angles to said frame, a fork pivotally secured inthe lower end of each of said legs, a wheel journalled in said fork,means secured to said forks for pivoting said forks through an arc ofsubstantially ninety degrees, means secured to said fork and said legsfor selectively locking and releasing said forks against and for pivotalmovement, a flexible element secured to said cross member, means forselectively increasing and decreasing the effective length of saidflexible eleand transporting device coma secondary unit;

a point spaced from said cross member, a means for selectivelyincreasing and decreasing the effective length of said frame securedflexible element, a plate secured to the bottom of the other end of saidframe, a pulley rotatably secured to the top of said frame near saidplate, a second pulley rotatably secured to said frame near said crossmember, a flexible element reeved under said pulley and over said secondpulley, a pair of outwardly extending links secured to said one end ofsaid frame; said links having holes near their outer ends, a pinselectively slidable into and out of said link holes; said secondaryunit comprising, an elongated frame, a cross member secured to one endof said elongated frame, a pair of spaced apart legs secured to saidcross member and extending down at substantially right angles to saidframe, a fork pivotally secured in the lower end of each of saidsecondary unit legs, means secured to said secondary unit forks forpivoting said secondary forks through an arc of substantially ninetydegrees, a wheel journalled in each of said unit forks, a means securedto said secondary unit forks and legs for selectively locking andreleasing said secondary unit forks against and for pivotal movement, aflexible element secured to said secondary unit cross member, a meansfor selectively increasing and decreasing the effective length of saidflexible element, and a pierced ear secured to the other end of saidsecondary unit frame; said pierced ear constructed and arranged toslidably fit between and align with said links; whereby said pin isinsertable through said links and said pin to secure said ear to saidlinks, and removable therefrom to detach said ear and links selectively.

4. In a lifting and transporting device comprising a primary unit and asecondary unit; said primary unit comprising, an elongated frame, across member secured to one end of said frame, a pair of spaced apartlegs secured to and extending down from said cross member atsubstantially right angles to said frame, a straight fork pivotallysecured in the lower end of each of said legs, an axle in said fork, awheel journalled on said axle; said axles being directly below saidlegs, means secured to each of said forks for pivoting said forksthrough an arc of substantially ninety degrees, a flexible elementsecured to said cross member, means for selectively increasing anddecreasing the effective length of said flexible element, a flexibleelement secured to said frame at a point spaced from said cross member,a means for selectively increasing and decreasing the effective lengthof said frame secured flexible element, a plate secured to the bottom ofthe other end of said frame, a pulley rotatably secured to the top ofsaid frame near said plate, a second pulley rotatably secured to saidframe near said cross member, a flexible element reeved under saidpulley and over said second pulley, a pair of outwardly extending linkssecured to said one end of said frame; said links having holes neartheir outer ends, a pin selectively slidable into and out of said linkholes; said secondary unit comprising, an elongated frame, a pair ofspaced apart legs secured to said cross member and extending down atsubstantially right angles to said frame, a wheel journalled on the endof each of said secondary unit legs, a flexible element secured to saidsecondary unit cross member, means for selectively increasing anddecreasing the effective length of said flexible element, and a piercedear secured ment, a flexible element secured to said frame at 18 to theother end of said secondary unit frame;

said pierced ear constructed and arranged to slidably fit between andalign with said links; whereby said pin is insertable through said linksand said pin to secure said ear to said links, and removable therefromto detach said ear and links selectively.

5. In a lifting and transporting device comprising a primary unit and asecondary unit; said primary unit comprising, an elongated frame, across member secured to one end of said frame, a pair of spaced apartlegs secured to and extending down from said cross member atsubstantially right angles to said frame, a straight fork pivotallysecured in the lower end of each of said legs, an axle in said fork, awheel journalled on said axle; said axles being directly below saidlegs, means secured to each of said forks for pivoting said forksthrough an arc of substantially ninety degrees, a flexible elementsecured to said cross member, means for selectively increasing anddecreasing the effective length of said flexible element, a flexibleelement secured to said frame at a point spaced from said cross member,a means for selectively increasing and decreasing the effective lengthof said frame secured flexible element, a plate secured to the bottom ofthe other end of said frame, a pulley rotatably secured to the top ofsaid frame near said plate, a second pulley rotatably secured to saidframe near said cross member, a flexible element reeved under saidpulley and over said second pulley, a pair of outwardly extending linkssecured to said one end of said frame; said links having holes neartheir outer ends, a pin selectively slidable into and out of said linkholes; said secondary unit comprising, an elongated frame, a crossmember secured to one end of said elongated frame, a pair of spacedapart legs secured to said cross member and extending down atsubstantially right angles to said frame, a straight fork pivotallysecured in the bottom of each leg of said secondary unit, an axlesecured in each of said secondary unit forks, a wheel journalled on eachof said secondary unit axles, means secured to said secondary unit forksfor pivoting each of said secondary unit forks through an arc ofsubstantially ninety degrees, a flexible element secured to saidsecondary unit cross member, means for selectively increasing anddecreasing the effective length of said flexible element, and a piercedear secured to the other end of said secondary unit frame; said piercedear constructed and arranged to slidably fit between and align withsaid links; whereby said pin is insertable through said links and saidpin to secure said ear to said links, and removable therefrom to detachsaid ear and links selectively.

6. In a lifting and transporting device, an elongated frame, a crossmember rigidly secured to said frame, a pair of spaced apart legssecured to and extending down from said member; said legs being parallelto each other, wheels journalled on the lower end of each leg, aflexible element having its end immovably secured to the device at anelevation substantially that of said cross member, a pair of pulleysjournalled on horizontal axle one secured adjacent each leg on saidcross member, a pair of pulleys journalled on vertical axles one securedto said cross member on each side of and adjacent to said frame; saidflexible element extending down from each end, then up and reeved oversaid pulleys journalled on horizontal axles, then extending across toand reeved around said pulleys journalled on vertical axles andextending back along said frame to form a loop above said frame, a pairof blocks one on each of the portions of said flexible element betweenthe secured ends and said pulleys journalled on horizontal axles; saidframe having a plurality of spaced apart holes in its top, land a pinselectively engaging and disengaging the holes of said frame; whereby alongitudinally movable means of securing said flexible element p againstmovement along said frame is provided.

7. In a lifting and transporting device, an elongated frame, a crossmember rigidly secured to said frame, a pair of spaced apart legssecured to and extending down from said member; said legs being parallelto each other, wheels journalled on the lower end of each leg, aflexible element having its end immovably secured to the device at anelevation substantially that of said cross member, a pair of pulleysjournalled on horizontal axles one secured adjacent each leg on saidcross member, a pair of pulleys journalled on vertical axles one securedto said cross member on each side of and adjacent to said frame; saidflexible element extending down from each end, then up and reeved oversaid pulleys journalled on horizontal axles, then extending across toand reeved around said pulleys journalled on vertical axles andextending back along said frame to form a loop above said frame, a pairof blocks one on each of the portions of said flexible element betweenthe secured ends and said pulleys journalled on horizontal axles; andmeans on said frame along its top for securing said flexible elementloop against movement relative to said frame in one direction at least.

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